I'm struggling with my sponsorship and need some help for a time

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I am about to start having to pay college loans, and the payment is more than I was anticipating. I would like to continue sponsoring my child but I'm not sure if I can; I am going to be cutting it close just to get my loan payments paid on time. Are there an options for situations like these? I would hate to cancel my sponsorship, but may have to if not. Thank you so much!

I went to a church camp in July and I was captivated by this program, and I immediately jumped to being a sponsor, but I never thought ahead. It's my senior year of high school, and I have tons of things to pay off, and I had to quit my job due to my lack of time. On top of all this, my dad was recently laid off of both of his jobs (he just got hired but makes half of his original income), and my mother doesn't work because of my younger siblings. At this time, I have no way to pay for them... I still have to catch up on two payments from August and September. I can't handle this responsibility now, even though I thought I was able to. I'm truly sorry... I would love to do this in the future, but when I'm financially stable and self-sustaining! I apologize again.

Jade, I understand. It can be tough to sponsor a child when you are in school. I have made your child available for another sponsor. You are not responsible for the missed donations. We will make sure that Kelly is taken care of. :) If in the future, you are able to sponsor again, please let us know.

I have had several major financial and health issues starting at the beginning of the this year (2014) and I just now have gotten my feet back on the ground. The next several months will be catch up and pay my medical bills so I won't be able til the beginning of the year (2015) to continue paying the full amount. Is there anyway to keep my child and get a lower payment until the beginning of the year? Thanks Brock

Brock, I'm so sorry to hear that you are going through such a tough time right now. I know that medical bills can be expensive and can pile up quick. I pray that your health is improving even as you are getting back on your feet financially. I have covered the missed months for you through the end of September. Regrettably, as a non-profit covering so many months of support for your child at this point, I will not be able to offer the lowered support amount for the time being. Please let us know in January how you are doing and if you continue to need assistance we can reassess the situation at that point.

I too have fallen on hard times and am struggling to make all my payments. I would like to try this option to see if I can get things figured out quickly so I do not have to cancel.
I would also need to cancel my payment with the Partners of Compassion Fund.
Thank you

John, thank you so much for your patience in receiving a reply as we are closed on the weekends. I am very sorry to hear that you are struggling but thank you for letting us know because we are more than happy to help you out during this time! I am grateful for your partnership over the years and for your desire to continue supporting your two girls. I have updated your account so that your support for Rahel and Merina are current through the end of the year. Beginning in January, your rate will be reduced to $19 per child for 6 months. If your situation improves before the end of that time, please let us know and we can update your account.

We are also currently going through a rough time trying to keep our children sponsored. Our daughter was recently diagnosed with a serious health issue and we are just struggling. I would also like to try this option that the others are looking into. I don't want to drop our sponsorship yet, we love those children. We are so grateful that Compassion is willing to work with people who are going through a rough time. Could we do the no payment for 3 months, then $19 for 6 months? Praying that we can get back on our feet in the next 6 month or so.

Michelle, thank you so much for reaching out to us. I am very sorry about your daughter and can't imagine what your family is going through right now. We will be standing with your family in prayer here at Compassion that your daughter would heal quickly and be restored back to her full health. I am so humbled by your sacrifice and desire to continue supporting Daniela and Chrisamuel despite your families current situation; you truly are the hands and feet of Jesus for these children.

Please don't worry about your donations for the next three months. We are happy to help you and your support will be covered by Compassion through the end of January. The next pull on your account will not be until February of 2015 and will be at the reduced rate of $19 for each child. Your rate will be reduced for 6 months. At the end of this time, please let us know if your situation has not changed and we can re evaluate at that time.

Hi! Unfortunately, I am having trouble making the payments for my sponsor child and the 7 dollars for HVC. With college loans and car payments it's getting rough. Could I cancel the extra 7 dollars? Then I also saw that you can cover for three months and then move the payments to 19 dollars for 6 months? That would be great. Thank you!

Hi Violeteyes! Thank you so much for your vulnerability and allowing us to help you out during this difficult time. Being a recent graduate myself, I completely understand how loans can begin to pile up and make finances tight. We don't want this to be a burden on you but certainly want to help you maintain the relationship you have begun to build with Sujith.

I have cancelled your extra giving to HVC today. Please don't worry about your support for the rest of this year as we are happy to cover this for you. I have updated your next automatic withdrawal to not pull until January 20th at the $19 rate. This will be in effect for 6 months and the $38 rate will resume again in July of 2015. I pray that your situation would improve quickly and that this will help you out :). God bless you and let me know if I can assist you further.

My husband has been out of work for several months and I just realized we do not have enough money in our bank account right now to pay our sponsorships this month. We do not want to stop being these boys' sponsors... they are the same ages as our own boys and we were looking forward to being part of their lives for the long haul. Is it possible to suspend our financial commitment for the next three months?

Elizabeth, I am so sorry to hear about your husbands job and that things have been difficult financially. I will be praying that things pick up for your family very soon. I am so humbled by your families sacrifice in wanting to continue supporting these young boys long term and I hope your own son's are enjoying building relationships with them :). I appreciate you coming to us because we are more than happy to help you out for a time!

Regrettably, I am unable to locate your account from your name and email address. Will you please post your child's ID number on here so that I am able to locate your account? You can also call our office at (800) 336-7676 or email us at ciinfo@us.ci.org.

Hi Susan, I just received an email from Rich Van Eaton saying there was a problem with our account because they weren't able to process our contribution this month. I can't find the place on Compassion's website to stop the autopay process from our bank account, and since there wasn't enough money in there to cover it, they must have been notified. Is there a note attached to our Compassion account or anything stating the next three months have been covered? Hopefully it was just a matter of cross-communication!

Elizabeth, I am so sorry for the confusion! There is a note on your account that your support has already been paid through the end of December. Regrettably, it looks like your credit card was declined on October 15 and then we were talking on here on October 16. Because of the credit card decline, you were on our list to contact to make sure everything was alright. As a side note, your automatic withdrawal has been stopped so please let us know if you would like to continue with that in January or if you'd like to just send the support in manually.

I recently lost my job and don't think I can afford to sponsor Prince right now while I'm out of work, but I don't want to cancel on him. Can you help me out like you did these other folks? Hopefully in a few months, I'll be employed again and able to take over this commitment again. Thanks.

Mat, I am so very sorry to hear about your job :(. I know how difficult such unanticipated circumstances like this can be. I pray that you find another job quickly and that God would open up doors of opportunity for you! I appreciate your sacrifice in wanting to continue supporting Prince despite your current situation. We are so glad that we can help you maintain the relationship you have been building with him over the past 5 years!

I have updated your account today so that your support for Prince is current through the end of January. Please don't worry about sending support for the next three month as we are going to cover this for you. You are still welcome to send him letters though and I know he will love to hear from you! Your next withdrawal will happen in February. If your situation has not changed by that time, please let us know and we're happy to work with you :). Have a victorious week!

I don't want to cancel my sponsorhips, but I definitely cannot make any payment until next February 2015. We have gone through tough health trials during this year that have drained us economically. Can I do this, skip the next four payments and continue from March 2015 on?

Lucy, I pray that you are being restored to full health and healing. We are happy to help you to be able to continue to sponsor your children. I have covered the next four months for you and set your automatic withdrawal ahead to March. Please let us know if we can help in any other way.

I'm so, so thankful I don't know what else to say, except that I feel I should let you know a little of what's been going on. My daughter Brenda, 20, had surgery earlier this year to remove a rather large benign tumor that was pressing her right kidney and liver. Then a month later we found out my dad had a large aneurysm in his abdomen aorta and four smaller ones. His surgery was in May. Now, on top of my fibromyalgia and other several health issues, I'm struggling with a tendinosis in my right shoulder. And as of right now my husband and daughter are both having some additional heart issues. This is the shortest I can explain, though I'm sure you understand it's more complicated than that. In January we have to start with the tests again with my daughter, for she still has a cyst in the carina and liquid cysts in her thyroids, all of which we found when we found out about her tumor. I am hoping in the Lord that the new tests in January won't reveal any worsening of her condition and maybe He'll be pleased to grant us a better year. Thank u, thank u so, so much for your help and understanding.

Amy, I am so sorry about your situation :(. We never want to hear that our sponsor's are struggling and I will be praying that your situation improves very quickly! I merged your inquiry with this conversation because we have had other sponsor's go through financial struggles and we want to be able to help you out during this difficult time if we are able to. Would it help you if we removed your extra giving towards the Medical Fund and then Compassion could cover your support of Tory for October through the end of January? We would also be willing to temporarily reduce your rate to $19 for up to 6 months. This would allow you to maintain the relationship you have been building with her. If you would be interested in either or both of these options, I am happy to update your account for you. If not, please let me know and I will make your child available for another sponsor today.

Susan- I am in the same boat many of these sponsors are in. I was wondering if I could get a few months of help and for both of my sponsored children and drop to $19 until I can get back to the full payments. Thank you!

Hi Mandy! I am sorry that you're experiencing financial difficulties right now, but I am so glad that you contacted us so that we can help you out for a while! I have updated your account today so that your support is covered through the end of January of 2015. Starting in February, your support will be reduced temporarily to $19 for each child. This reduced rate will continue for 6 months. My hope is that this will give you time to get back on your feet and I pray your situation improves quickly. Please let us know if your situation has not changed by August and we can re evaluate your sponsorship :). Thank you for continuing your support for these precious children and please let me know if I can assist you further!

Good morning Jacinda! My heart goes out to your family and I am so sorry that you're struggling :(. I pray that things change quickly for you and thank you for your sacrifice and love for Odali in wanting to continue despite your circumstances. I am happy we can assist you and I have updated your account today to reflect these changes. Your support for Odali will be covered for November through January of 2015. Beginning in February, your support will be reduced to $19 for 6 months. In August, your support for Odali will increase back to the $38. I hope this helps you and please let me know if we can assist you further! Also, thank you so much for writing to both of these kiddos, I know they LOVE to hear from you!

My husband and I are going through some financial difficulties at this time, but we do not want to cancel our sponsorship for Thierry. Can you please contact us about the short term help you all offer? The only thing we would like to cancel is the Partners of Compassion. Thanks for the wonderful work you all do.Sponsor # 3019777

Mr. & Mrs. Boykin, I am so sorry that you are experiencing financial difficulties right now :(. I know how much stress that can have on a family and I pray that your situation would improve quickly. I have cancelled your extra giving to the Partners of Compassion Fund effective today. We appreciate the time that you generously gave towards this fund and all that you provided.

Thank you so much for your desire to continue supporting Thierry during this time and we are happy to help you out! I apologize as I do not know your specific situation. But if you anticipate this to be short term, we would be willing to cover the months missed and bring your account current through the end of the year. Beginning in January we could also temporarily reduce your rate to $19 for up to 6 months. If either/both of these options would help you out, please let me know and I will update your account today.

We would greatly appreciate your support and help during this time. We do hope it is only for a short time period. With the support we would be paying $19 a month from January-June and then in July start paying the $38 a month, is this correct? If so, then yes we would like to do this option. Thank you so much.

Mr. & Mrs. Boykin, yes, starting in January, your support will be $19 a month until June. Then in July, it will go back up to $38. As you requested, I have taken care of the lowered support amount for the first six months of 2015 for you.

I'm a college student, and my job has cut my hours lately, so I haven't had enough in my paychecks to cover everything. I really need some time to catch up, so I can pay for college tuition for the spring. I'm overdue on my committment now, and I really want to keep my sponsor child. I just need more time. Is there anything that can be done about this?

Hannah, I am sorry about your hours getting cut at work :(. I know that can really put a strain on trying to get your bills covered, especially being a college student. I pray that your situation improves quickly and that you're able to get caught up!

I appreciate your desire to continue supporting your child despite your current situation and we would be happy to help you out for a time! I believe I found your account; do you sponsor a child named Deysi? If this is not your child, please post your child's reference number on here so that I can locate you :). If this is the correct account, we would be willing to cover your support through the end of the year. Beginning in January, we can reduce your rate temporarily to $19 for up to six months. Please let me know if either or both of these options would be of help to you and I will update your account.

That would be so great! Yes, my sponsor child is Deysi. Thank you so much! If you could please cover the rest of the year and reduce it to $19, I can totally get caught up. Thank you thank you thank you!

Hannah, I have taken care of this for you. We have covered Deysi's support for the rest of the year and starting in January you will be at the $19 support amount until July. Please let us know if we can help in any other way.

I am a college student, I work and I make little money at the job I am currently at, and the majority of my money goes towards gas so I can drive myself to and from my house and college campus. I really want to continue my sponsorship but I can't afford it anymore and I'm behind in my payments.

Oh Mackenzie, I am so sorry to hear about your situation :(. I have been in a similar situation before so my heart goes out to you. When I was going through this, God just continued to remind me of the character and strength He was building in me for His purpose and that it was just for a season :). He is so faithful and will provide! I will be praying for you!

In regards to your sponsorship of Kakeya, I see that you have been with her for several years and have been such an incredible letter writer! You are making a huge difference in her life and please know that you have not let her down. I want to encourage you that she does not know anything about the financial situation and although your support is behind, she still receives support and is able to attend the project activities :).

You certainly know your financial situation better than I do, as well as the time frame of your job and how much college you have left. If it would help you, we would like to cover your months missed as well as the next couple of months to bring your account current through the end of the year. Beginning in January, Compassion would also be willing to temporarily reduce your rate to $19 for up to 6 months. We can re evaluate your situation after this time. Please let me know if this would allow you to continue your relationship with Kakeya. If you don't anticipate that your financial situation will improve by then, we certainly do not want this to be a burden for you and I can make Kakeya available for another sponsor.

The help with the payments and the reduced cost will definitely help! This is my first year in college so my financial situation will probably remain the same for awhile (unless I get a new job). But like you said we can re-evaluate when that time comes. I really appreciate you helping me out, thank you.

This reply was created from a merged topic originally titled Overcharged.

I called last month because I have been having constant car issues and am now moving out of my place and cannot afford to pay for my sponsor child. I was trying to get my payment taken off for the month of October so that if things were normalizing in November, I could continue with the sponsorship and instead my payment was deferred and now I owe $76.00 which I do not have. Is there a way to get this taken off so I can just pay the $ 38.00? If not, I may need to cancel my sponsorship all together. I am financially strained and entirely to stressed to deal with anymore mishaps.

Paradise, I am so sorry for any misunderstanding or confusion there may have been on your account. I appreciate your patience with us as we correct this issue. Car troubles can be so frustrating and on top of moving I can imagine that to be overwhelming. I pray that your situation improves quickly and you get settled into your new home and figure things out with your car!

I see that you called in this morning and we have taken care of your request. Compassion is going to cover the month of October for you and I hope that this helps you out! Thank you so much for your sacrifice and heart to continue supporting Helen. Please let us know if we can assist you with anything else :).

I was wondering if you would be able to cover my sponsorship for the last couple of months and I could start paying again this month. I lost my debit card but also had to pay for things at school and haven't been able to make payments. Would this be possible?

Hi Kayla! I am sorry that you lost your debit card :(. I know that can be nerve wracking but I pray that it didn't cause any issues for you and that your bank was able to help you out!

I appreciate you wanting to continue supporting your child and we would be happy to help you out! Regrettably, I was unable to locate your account by your email address. Are you sponsoring a child named Evode? If not, can you please post your child's ID number here so that I can locate you in our system? I will be happy to update your account at that time :).

I am having a difficult time making payments right and I want to keep my children. I have had them for quite a while now and I have nver had any difficulty paying my payments until now, but I am just experiencing some financial hardships at this time. I am already behind on my payments. What can I do to potentially lower payments or put them on hold temporarily?

Lesly, I am so sorry for the financial hardships you're experiencing and I pray that your situation improves quickly :(. You have been sponsoring children with Compassion for almost 6 years and have been such a blessing to this ministry and faithful sponsor to these kiddos. I completely understand that you hope to continue the relationship you have with them and we certainly want to help you out if we can!

Would it help you if Compassion covered your months missed and brought your support for both children current through the end of December? Beginning in January, we would also be willing to temporarily reduce your rate to $19 per child for up to 6 months. Please let me know if this would help and I will update your account.

I am struggling with my sponsorship due to some financial hardships. The account is past due already and I need some help getting it current and for some temporary relief in the few months to come. I do not want to cancel my membership because I don't want to disappoint my children. Can anyone help? Feeling so frustrated with this. I may have to cancel if I can not figure something out.

Elsa, I am so sorry that you have been experiencing financial struggles as I certainly understand this can not only be frustrating but can cause worry and stress as well. I pray that God would provide for you during this time and shower you with His peace.

We are more than happy to assist you for a time so that you are able to maintain your relationships with Eva and Alex! I know you had contacted us regarding this situation at the end of November and we had hoped to cover a few months for you and temporarily reduce your rate. You can see our reply to your previous inquiry above, in an earlier post in this same conversation. Regrettably, we never heard back from you and so we did not update your account to reflect any changes. We would be willing to bring your support for both children current through the end of January. This would be our gift to you and you would not need to reimburse Compassion. We could also reduce your rate to $19 per child beginning in February, for up to 6 months. My hope is that after those 6 months, your situation will have improved and you will be able to go forward with your sponsorship at the normal rate. If this will help you, please let me know and I will update your account. If not, you might consider just supporting one child for right now. I know that it can be a difficult decision to make. Please let me know if either of these options will work for you and I will process your request.

Lesly, we are so grateful to be able to help! I have taken care of this for you so that you will not owe anything until February and then the support will be just $19 per child for six months. Please let us know if we can help in any other way.

I have been sponsoring a child through Compassion for about a year and a half. My original child moved out of the area and I was given another little girl. Due to financial problems involving my schooling, I have been unable to make my payments for the past three months. I would rather not have to cancel my sponsorship because I love my little girl and would like to be able to continue supporting her, but my financial situation is not looking like it will improve before I begin a new job in January.

Michaela, I am so sorry that school is causing financial stress in your life right now :(. I know it can be hard but I pray that all of your hard work pays off and congratulations on your upcoming job opportunity!

We value the relationship you have been building with Shakila and are more than happy to help you during this time! Would it help you if we covered your support from October through January? My hope is that this would relieve you of the burden to make up your months missed and also give you time to get settled into your new job in January. You could begin your support again starting in February but are still welcome to send letters back and forth during this time. Please let me know if this would help you out and I will update your account to reflect this change :).

Michaela, I am so happy that this will help you out! I have updated your account today and your support will be current through the end of January. Please let us know if your situation has not changed by then and we can work with you :). God bless and Merry Christmas! Good luck with your new job.

Please help. The last thing I want to do is cancel my sponsorship of two children, but with graduate school tuition, wedding, and unforeseen expenses (yay car and dental problems), I am really struggling to stay afloat. I really need help until I can get back on my feet and I'm just struggling financially and emotionally. Is there anything that can be done so I don't have to lose my sponsorship of Paola and Desmond? :[ Thank you for your help.

Alicia, we are more than happy to help you out. It really sounds like you are going through a tough season not only financially but also emotionally and not to mention, BUSY! Congratulations on school and your wedding but I'm definitely also praying for your car and dental issues as I know those can be stressful :(.

Would it help you if we covered your support for three months? We could bring your account current through the end of March. We would also be willing to temporarily reduce your rate to $19 per child for up to six months beginning in April. My hope is that this would give you time to catch up on expenses and get back into the swing of things again as a newly wed! Please let me know if this would help you out and I will update your account today.

Alicia, it is our pleasure to help! I have taken care of the next few months for you. Starting in April, your support will be just $19 per child for six months. Please let us know if we can help in any other way.

Ana, I am sorry that you're experiencing financial struggles this month. With the holidays, I certainly understand things can be tight and we don't want this to be a burden on you. I have updated your account today so that your support is current through the end of December. Please don't worry about making a donation this month and let's just start you fresh in January so that you can get back on your feet :). I hope this helps you out. Please let me know if we can assist you further. Merry Christmas!

It's humbling to ask for a bit of help in our sponsorships, but we don't want to cancel. We are working diligently to get ourselves out of a financial burden and now need a new roof on our home. We would appreciate your offering to get back on our feet and still be able to continue our relationship with Compassion. My sponsor #2999440 James

Something has come up with my husband's job this week. There have been a lot of ups and downs this last year as well. Sadly, we need to stop sponsoring Natalia from Ecuador. I would like to keep sponsoring Brigitte, but I may have to stop with her as well. We will barely be able to keep sponsoring Mayara, but I hate to lose Brigitte, too. Is there anything that can be done about this? I am hoping we might be in a better place in May. #3297568

Marissa, I am so sorry that your family has had a tough year financially and that your husband is having difficulties with his job right now. I have made Natalia available for another sponsor today and we will try to find her another sponsor as soon as possible.

Would it help you out if we temporarily reduced your rate to $19 per child for the months of January through April since you expect your situation to improve by May? Please let me know if this would help you and I will update your account for Brigitte and Mayara.

Marissa, we are happy to help you to be able to keep the relationships that you have with these two precious girls! I have reduced your rate for both Brigitte and Mayara to $19 for the months of January through April.

I was told to call Compassion, but I am currently in school. I had sent out my credit card information, which got intercepted and my account had gotten hacked. My workplace recently caught fire, so i am without a job, with a lot of bills. I am needing help because I love doing what I am doing, but until I can find a new job, I have very little money. What can I do? I owe about $150

Gracie, first off, I don't want you to worry about the amount that you are behind on your support. It sounds like you have enough of other things going on right now. :( We would be happy to cover your support for a time and maybe even lower your support amount to $19 for a while too. Regrettably, I was unable to locate your account from your name and email address. Please post your child's ID number here or email us at socialmedia@compassion.com. No need to call. We will take care of you in whatever way is most convenient for you. :)

Cortney, I understand and I can see on your account that we have helped you for several months. I am so sorry to hear that you are still struggling. I hope and pray that you are able to get back on your feet soon. I have made your child available for another sponsor.